SUBJECT PRONOUNS

Note: all the subjects on this page are written in red.

In Spanish we do not normally use subject pronouns, only when we want to express a contrast:

¿Dónde estás?
Estoy detrás de la casa. ¿Dónde estás tú?

¿Dónde estáis?
Estamos junto al parque. ¿Dónde estáis vosotros?

The reason is that in Spanish we have different verb forms for each person:
    estoy = I am
    estás = you are
    estamos = we are
    estáis = you are
    están = they are
Exception: we have the same verb form for all the third person singular pronouns (he, she, it), for example: "está".
See what happens if we do not use a subject pronoun when it is necessary:

¿Dónde están Tony y Karen?
Está en la biblioteca y está en casa de la abuela.

In this case it is not clear who we are referring to. That is why we need to use the personal pronouns in this case:
    Él está en la biblioteca y ella está en casa de la abuela.
In English they also have only one form for all those pronouns; in the present simple, it is the -s form:
    He is late. = (Él) llega tarde.
    She is late. = (Ella) llega tarde.
    It is late. = Es tarde.
In other tenses (for example, in the past simple) English has only one form for ALL the pronouns, so we need to use a subject pronoun in order to make it clear who or what we are talking about:
    I finished my homework at six.
    She finished her homework at seven.
    They finished their homework at eight.
    The film finished at ten.
This is the reason why we always need to use a subject pronoun in English when we do not have any other subject, even if we can easily guess the subject:
    I live in this house. My cousins live in that house. It is very old. They live with my uncle George. He's not very old. He works in the factory. It is very old.

Now, think about these QUESTIONS:
  1. In which position are the subjects in the examples in Spanish?
  2. In which position are the subjects in most of the examples in English?
  3. What is the real subject in the sentence "There is a book on the table"? (Change the verb from the singular to the plural to find out).
  4. What other things can appear in a sentence in English in the usual position of the subject?
  5. Which sentence in this box does not have a subject?
  6. Why does it not have a subject?
  7. Is the following sentence correct?
    I think I am a good student, but I am not sure I can pass the exam that have tomorrow, because I won't be able to study today.
    Answer: [No, there is no subject for the verb "have".]

Note: in affirmative sentences the subject comes before the verb. Exceptions:

  • In a sentence like There is a cat in the garden (= Hay un gato en el jardín), the word "there" is not really the subject, although it sometimes makes things easier for Spanish students to consider it the subject; the real subject is "a cat". Compare that sentence with this one, where the verb must be plural: There are some cats in the garden.

  • The same thing happens when "there" (translated as "ahí" or "allí") or "here" (translated as "aquí") appear at the beginning of a sentence:

    - Here is your brother.
    - There goes the bus, now we have to wait for the next one.
Image sources:
https://openclipart.org/detail/178581/couple
https://openclipart.org/detail/172666/soldier-with-walkie-talkie-radio

JJCC